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(No Model.) N N J. F. PALMER.

TRACTION ENGINE.

Patented Feb. 5, 1884.

n, PETERS Pholohlho n hor. Washinglun D. I;

- is fastened the bevel-gear wheel UNITED STATES PATENT Orricn.

J FORMAN PALMER, OF AUBURN, NEYV YORK, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF, JOHN SEYMOUR, AND SIDNEY \V.

PALMER, ALL OF SAME PLACE.

TRACTION- ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 293,066, dated February 5 1884., Application filed November 5, 1893. (X0 model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J. FORMAN PALMER, of Auburn, in the county of Cayuga and in the State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Traction-13in gines; and I do hereby declarethat the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 shows a View, in side elevation, of my improved steering apparatus in place on a traction-engine; Fig. 2, a plan view of the same, and Fig. 3 a detail sectional view of the segmental rack and its supporting-box.

The object of my invention is to provide an improved steering apparatus for traction-e11- gines; and to this end it consists in the construction, arrangement, and combination of parts, whereby the engine can be steered quickly and readily by power from the engine itself and the direction of the cramping of the front axle by such power can be governed at will by the simple shifting of a lever within reachof the driver or engineer.

In the drawings, A designates the boiler and B the fire-box, both shown in dottedor broken lines, so as to show the relative arrangement and the construction of the parts of the steering apparatus more clearly.

The crank-wheel O is to be journaled and driven in the usual way, and is of the ordinary form, except that its edge is grooved as shown in the figures. Just below this crankwheel, but beyond the plane of its outside face, is a gear-wheel, D, journaled on a stud, (2, extending outward horizontally from the side of the boiler. To .the inner side of this gear Upon the outer end of the stud (Z, and close against the outside face of the gear D, is pivoted the three-armed yoke-piece F. The two horizontal arms f f of this yoke carry, at their outer ends suitable journal-studs f f, extending inward toward the boiler. On these studs are journaled the pinions GG and the double cone-shaped friction-wheels H H. Each of these friction-wheels is, as shown. fastened to or made in one piece with the pinion on the same stud. The pinions are in the same plane with wheel D, and one of them, G, is eonstantly in mesh with it. A third pinion, G, likewise journaled in a stud on arm f, is constantly in mesh with pinion G andwith gear-i wheel D. As shown, the pinionG does not mesh with the latter wheel. The friction- 5 5 wheels are below and in the same plane with the crank-wheel O, and their edges are beveled, as shown, so that they will fit into the groove in the edge of said crank-wheel. When the arms f f are horizontal, as shown in Fig. 1, neither one of the friction-wheels isin c011- tact with the crank-wheel. The arm I of the yoke, which is to be used as a lever-arm to rock the yoke on its stud, is then perpendicular. position, one or the other of the friction-wheels H H will be carried up until its edge fits into the groove of the crank-wheel, and as the lat ter wheel is in constant revolution while the machine is in operation the friction-wheel and 0 its attached small gear -wheel will be also caused to revolve. If the arm bearing wheel H is thrown up, so as to bring such wheel into contact with crank-wheel, the gear-wheel D will then be caused to revolve inone direction 7 5 by the small gear G meshing therewith and turning with friction-wheel H.' If the other arm be thrown up, so as to bring the other friction-wheel H into contact with the edge of the revolving crank-wheel, the gear D will so be caused to revolve in the opposite direction through the medium of the gears G G. Instead. of having their edges shaped as described, the crank-wheel and friction-pinions can be made with their contacting-edges fiat, as shown 8 5 indotted lines in Fig. 2. Fulcrumed on a short arm or bracket, K, attached to the firebox or frame thereof, is lever K, whose upper end is within easy reach of the driver or engineer. To this lever, at 0 K,' is pivotal] y connected the link-rod L, pivoted at its front end to arm I of yoke F. This link is of such length that when the lever is perpendicular the arm I will be in such position that neither of the friction-wheels on the 5 horizontal arms will be in contact with the. edge of the crank-wheel. The-lever is normally held perpendicular by the action of the If it is moved forward or back fromsuch 6 ders or raised portions a n of bracket-arm N,

attached to the side of the fire-box frame and extending backward close beside the lever, and

in a plane parallel to that of the motion of the latter. By the action of these springs, then, the friction-wheels will, through the connecting mechanism described, be normally kept out of contact with the crank-wheel O.

Journaled and supported in suitable boxes, on arms or brackets attached to the sides of theboiler, is a shaft, 0, having on its upper end the bevel-toothed pinion I, meshing with bevel-gear F, attached to the side of gearwheel D, as described above. The shaft extends forward and downward, and 011 itslower end is a second small bevel-wheel, Q, which meshes with bevel-gear wheel R on the outer end of transverse horizontal shaft S, journaled in bearings on the lower ends of arms or standards s s, and prevented from longitudinal movement in such bearing by fixed collars, or by other means, as desired. Feathered upon the central portion of this shaft is the worm T. Upon the shaft, at a short distance from each end of this worm, is a collar, t, and between each collar and the end of said worm is a rubber washer or buffer. The worm can then slide upon the shafta short distance in either direction, and its movement is limited by the yield ing cushions or buffers.

With the worm T meshes the segmental rack supported and guided in the long curved openended box U, supported at or near each end, upon one of the standards 8 s. This box, as shown in Fig. 3, is formed of the fiat bottom plate, 44, having an upright rib, it, along its front edge. Attached to thetop of this plate, at its rear edge, is the long curved half-box a, consisting of the flat attaching portion u, the upright parta", and the'horizontal portion a extending forward from the top of upright part a, and provided with the rib a over rib u. The rack fits and slides within the box thus formed, and the ribs a and a, being suitably curved longitudinally, bear against the back of the rack proper. The supporting-web of the rack projects out between said ribs. The arms of this web extend forward and at a point just back of the front axle are joined together. To their under side, at the point of junction, is fixed the sleeve V, and to the under side of the rack-web, just outside and in front of box U. is fixed another sleeve, V, whose opening is in line with that of sleeve V. The central portion of the rear side of box U is, as shown in Fi 2, cut away to provide for the meshing of the worm with the rack moving within said box.

A fork, IV, has the ends of its arms pivoted in lugs ww, on the front axle of the engine, by

means of bolt X, passing through such ends and the lugs. Extending to the rear and front of the fork, at its central point, are the rigid arms Y and Y, which fit into and are capable of longitudinal movement in sleeves V and V, respectively. Vith this yielding connection between the fork NV and the rack, and the provision already described for allowing 1ongitudinal movement of the worm on the transverse shaft, all injurious strain upon the parts of my steering apparatus and the frame of the engine is avoided. XVithout them or their equivalents rough and uneven ground could not be traveled over by the engine without danger of injury to the frame or the boiler to which the supporting-brackets for the apparatus are attached.

The operation of my apparatus is simple and obvious.

As the direction in which the bevel-gear wheel E is turned by the connecting-gear between it and the crank-wheel can be determined and changed at will by motion of the hand-lever, and as the segmental rack which swings the axle-fork is operated by the connecting gearing described from this bevelgear wheel, it follows that the direction in which the axle is cramped by my power steering apparatus can also be determined and changed by the movements of said lever. As indicated above, when the lever is upright in its normal position the steering apparatus is thrown out of action.

In Fig. l is shown, in dotted lines, a modification of my steering apparatus. In this form shaft 0 is inclined backward and downward, and has on or near its lower end a worm, O, which meshes with the teethjo on the ordinary drum in use, where the front axle is shifted by means of chains wound in opposite directions upon a shaft or drum.

I do not intend to claim herein, broadly,

means for guiding a traction-engine by power derived from the engine itself, as such are substantially described and covered in another appplieation filed by me of even date with his; nor do I intend to claim herein any of the devices or combinations of devices shown, described, and claimed in either of the two applications filed by me of even date with this application and now pending.

Having thus fully set forth the nature and merits of my invention, what I claim as new is 1. In a traction-engine, in combination with the crank-wheel thereof, a rocking yoke carrying friction-wheels adapted to be alternately brought into contact with the crankwheel and to be rotated thereby, gearing connecting one of these wheels with a shaft, so as to rotate it in one direction, and gearing connecting the other with the shaft, so as to rotate it in the opposite direction, and suitable eonneeting-gearing between this shaft and the steering mechanism, which swings the frontaxle on its pivot to guide the machine, substantially as shown and described.

2. In a power steering apparatus for traetion engines, the gear-wheel journaled on a tion-wheels, meshing directly with the gear-' wheel on the yoke-stud, the toothed wheel attached to and revolving with the other frictionwheel, and also connected with the large gearwheel on the yoke-stud by an intermediate pinion, and suitable actuating-gearing connecting this wheel with the front axle-shifting device, all substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In combination with the crank-wheel, the

friction-wheels mounted on arms of a rocking yoke, and adapted to be alternately brought into contact with the crank-wheel by movement of the yoke, the pinions attached to and revolving with the friction-wheels, the large gear-wheel meshing directly with one of these pinions, and connected with the other by'an intermediate pinion, the bevel-gear Wheel revolving with the large gear-wheel and meshing with the bevel-pinion on a shaft which, on the other end, carries a second bevelpinion meshing with the bevel-wheel on the screwshaft for shifting the segmental rack for swinging the front axle on its pivot, substantially as and for the purpose described.

4. The combination of the pivoted rocking yoke carrying the friction-wheels, and means within the reach of the driver or engineer for rocking said yoke on its pivot to bring the one or the other of the friction-wheels into contact with the crank-wheel, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. In combination with the rocking yoke carrying the friction-wheels, and provided with a downwardly-extending arm, the link pivotally connected to said arm and to alever in reach of the engineer or driver, and springs for normally holding the lever in such position that the yoke will be so held on its pivot that the friction-wheels will be at rest and out of contact with the crank-wheel, substantially as shown and described.

6. In a steering apparatus for traction-engines, the rack-actuating worm-sleeve turning with but capable of longitudinal movement on its shaft, the collars on said shaft, and the rubber buffers between these collars and the ends of the worm sleeve, to act as yielding stops to limit its movement, substantially as shown and described.

7 The guiding segmental rack sliding and supported in a suitable box attached to sup-i ports from the boiler or engine frame, in combination with the rigid sleeves attached underneath the front and rear ends of the rackweb, and the axle-guiding fork hinged at its front end to the axle, and at its rear end provided with arms projecting to the front and rear and playing longitudinally in the sleeves on the rack-web, substantially as and for the purpose set forth. a i

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this 3d day of October, A. D. 1883.

J. FORMAN PALMER.

\Vitn esses HENRY O. HAZARD, PHILIP F. LARNER. 

